The Mare in the Moon
by Onyx Eclissius
Summary: Nightmare Moon's return is within Onyx's grasp. Can he bring her back to power? A sequel to Onyx's Origins.
1. Chapter 1

Days go by; those turn to years and decades and centuries; finally a millennium passed. One

thousand years later, where the sun rises and sets on the horizon. The rains stop to bring

flowers blooming life. I can see everything moving around me; the brightest days and the

darkest nights, the plant life flourishing in and around the castle. There I stood there looking

into her eyes for a thousand years, with the stone tear frozen in time on my cheek, thinking of

when we could escape. Sapphires eyes started to change from a rocky slate grey to a beautiful

shimmering baby blue, like she was being reanimated after all this time. I heard stone cracking

and breaking away. The stone surrounding Sapphires front-right hoof fractured and her hoof

broke free. With a little more effort she completely broke out of the rock. After she stretched and

brushed herself off. Standing and looking at me she spoke for the first time in a thousand years.

"Onyx? You in there buddy?" She asked me while knocking on my stone head, "Don't tense

up, okay?"

With that being said, she raised her hoof and cracked me on the crown of my head, shattering

the stone that encased me. Being broken free from the earthen prison, I fell over and held my

head in pain.

"Gahh! Sapphire! Don't do that!"

"What did you want me to do? Kick you? I'd think getting kicked would hurt more. It's been

too long."

"Yeah, but at least we still have a home."

"True, so what's first on the list?"

"I don't know, but we have to deal with Celestia and bring your mother into power. No more

armies, no more battles, no more depending on other ponies for support. It's just you and me

out here. So first things first, we need to find a library, we need to know what has changed over

the years."

"Why do we need a library? We could just visit Mourning Gloom."

"We need to find some history books...It'll be faster."

"Ok but first we need to get to Gloom, I'm starving."

"Okay, that mare should be around here somewhere, right?"

"If the orphanage is still around...then we can find her easily."

"Let's hope nothing changed over the times."

"What do you mean? Everything changes over time."

"I mean the path to Canterlot."

"Okay, then let's go!"

We started off to where I remembered Canterlot was. The forest definitely changed, but not by

much. There were more trees. We soon arrived a building with a luminescent sign that said The

Bright Days Ahead Orphanage.

"Hey, it's the orphanage Onyx, look!" Sapphire pointed

"Let's kill two birds with one stone, then."

"Sounds good to me." Sapphire finished as we stepped up to the door. I pushed it open with

a shove. Inside the doors were fillies and foals running around and playing. Some were drawing

and some were talking and playing games. I saw an old mare in the kitchen, down the hall in

front of me. We entered and I shut the doors behind Sapphire. We moved into the kitchen.

"Gloom?" I asked. The mare turned around and looked at me perplexedly.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"Onyx" I responded, baffled.


	2. Chapter 2

"That name sounds familiar", Gloom tried remembering.

"It's been a long time."

"Yes it has, Onyx", she said as her eyes dimmed.

"You remember", I said smiling, "Could we get some food? We have been stuck in stone for

the past millennium with nothing to eat."

"Yes, of course", she hurriedly mixed up something for Sapphire and me. I turned away to say

something to Sapphire quietly.

"Does she seem nicer to you?", I asked.

"I guess, I only knew her when she was nice."

"I think Celestia might have brainwashed her again."

"Why do you think that?"

"She's being nice, the children are playing, and they're having fun."

"Okay, but first, how would she remember us if she was reprogrammed?"

"Sapphire, she's not a robot."

"Well, anyway, ponies can change over time. Just look at me or you. You used to be very

exclusive with yourself and your life, but now you're more open."

"Only with you", I butted in.

"You've still changed. You used to not care about me, but now you protect me like I'm your

little sister or something."

"It seems like the other way around. I hurt you and you protected me"

"Stuff happens; that's the past, time to move on"

"I guess your right."

"Hold on..."

"What is it now?"

"Let me just savor those words for a minute."

"Oh, shut up Sapphire." I said smiling, bumping her shoulder.

Gloom came back to give us large bowls filled to the brim with hay, oats, and flowers. Gloom

spoke up in her old creaky mare voice.

"I haven't seen either of you for such a long time. Where were you two?"

"Long story...We found Mother's castle, acquired a small army, fought Celestia, and were

trapped in stone for a millennium.", I paused to catch a breath, "I need to know two things

before we leave though. Where is a public library I could go to and what's new around here?"

"Well that story is sad, although I knew you didn't win, for Celestia still reigns. On the brighter

side, there is a library in Celestia's Castle. Also, I never heard of a fight at the Canterlot Castle."

"That's the government for there somewhere else? That place is an omen to me right

now."

"You could go to Ponyville"

"That rest stop on the trails?"

"No, it's a town now"

"That's new; where would I find a library there?"

"In the center of town, I think somepony may be moving in there soon."

"Why would you think that?"

"Celestia has had some renovations done to it, now it's like a house."

"Thank you Gloom" I finished. She smiled at me and Sapphire and waved a goodbye as we

left the building.


	3. Chapter 3

"That was nice" Sapphire spoke up, finally.

"Yeah, I guess. Let's get to Ponyville; I need to see what has happened while we were gone."

We traveled to Ponyville and wow that place got big! I remembered it as a small village with

maybe one building, that being a cabin. Now it's a small metropolis. It being day out, we

moved quickly to the nearest public building. The first one to come into view was a place called

Sugarcube Corner. I entered first and moved to the glass display. On the display were a single

brass bell and a light blue vase with assorted flowers in it. I lifted my hoof to ring the bell and

right before I was able to press on the bell, an energized pink pony jumped out from behind the

counter.

"Oh my gosh, a customer! I've never seen you around Ponyville before, are you new here!?"

"Yeah, Sapphire and I came here from Canterlot and..."

"You came from Canterlot!? That place is like the biggestest place in all of Equestria! Have

you met Rarity!? She would love to meet somepony from Canterlot! She would love to see your

girlfriend, her coat is sooooooooo pretty! She really really REEEALLY likes pretty things!"

"Okay, well, do you know the fastest way there?"

"Fast? I know somepony who's really fast! She's my friend Dashie!"

"Who's Dashie?"

"Rainbow Dash silly; she's the fastest flier in all of Equestria! Have you been living under a

rock?"

"Funny story..."

"I lived on a rock farm when I was younger and..."

"I need to go" I cut her off "If I need somepony to talk to, or get talked at, I'll come find you...I

never caught your name"

"My name's Pinkie Pie! You can just call me Pinkie; all of my friends do! What's your name?

Oh, and your friend's"

"I'm Onyx and this is Sapphire, alright. We will be going now" I ended and walked out the

door with the pink pony bouncing behind me to see me out the door while waving frantically.

"You find out where the library is?"

"No. You were right there! You should have heard everything!"

"I could've if her mouth didn't move at a million miles a minute"

"Fair I guess"

"I heard Rarity and Rainbow Dash; we should visit one of them first"

"Where could they be then?" Seconds after I asked that question, I heard somepony in the air

yell and cheer loudly.

"Woo Hoo! Yeah!", the unknown mare proclaimed above the clouds. Sapphire stepped

forward to tell me "I'll be back" and then flew off into the clouds. Sapphire returned alongside a

Pegasus with a mane of a rainbow and a coat that looks as if she was born of the sky itself.

"Onyx, I found Rainbow Dash" Sapphire said

"Yep, that's me!" Rainbow spoke up in a raspy voice.

"Your friend, Pinkie, talked about you, so I decided to come and find you"

"Oh, Pinkie? What did she tell you?"

"You're the fastest flier in Ponyville"

"More like the fastest flier in all of Equestria!"

"I'll give you points for modesty" I said sarcastically.

"Yeah...hey!" Rainbow caught what I said.

"Could you tell me where I could find...eh...Rarity?"

"Why should I tell you?" Rainbow said defensively as Sapphire stepped by my side.

"I'll race you for the information!" Sapphire proposed.

"Race me? BWAHAHAAAAHAHAHAAHAHA!" Rainbow exploded with laughter.

"Pride goes before a fall, Rainbow Dash" Sapphire recited.

"Okay, I'll prove it to you! Race now! Ten laps around the Carousel Boutique. If you win, I'll

tell you anything you want to know. If I win...you have to clear the skies for me for the next

week!"

"Deal!" Sapphire and Rainbow Dash raised their hooves and hoof bumped to seal the deal.

"Ready. Set. Go!"

Sapphire followed Rainbow around the track the first time to see where to go, then finished two

laps faster than Rainbow did, winning the race. Sapphire didn't break a sweat and landed next

to me. Rainbow Dash, exhausted, landed opposite Sapphire with an angered look on her face.

"So I won"

"What do you want to know?" Rainbow spoke reluctantly while gritting her teeth. I stepped up

and asked the question.

"Where do I find Rarity?"

"There" Rainbow pointed to the circular building with a dome-shaped roof.

"The Boutique?" I asked in wonder

"Yeah, is that all?"

"I also need to know where the nearest library is."

"The big tree in the center of town used to be one, but that place belongs to Celestia and was

closed a while ago for some reason, so I don't know if you can just waltz on in there. If you were

as awesome as me, you could slip in and out in a dash!"

"Luckily, I don't have to be as awesome as you; goodbye Rainbow Dash" Rainbow lifted

herself into the sky and bulleted through the clouds.

"I guess she's pretty pissed" I said "If she's supposed to be the 'fastest flier in all of Equestria'

how did you win?" I asked.

"I cheated" Sapphire gave an evil grin and walked up next to me. I shrugged and motioned at

Sapphire to follow. Sapphire soon behind, we entered the Carousel Boutique. You could hear

somepony in the background.

"Oh dear! Your outfit is simply unacceptable! If you want to impress the ladies you will have

to let me work." That must be Rarity. "This color will blend perfectly with your mane" I moved

forward to the voices. I peeked around the corner to find a stunning fair mare with an elegant

amethyst coiled mane.

"Wow, she's gorgeous" I whispered.

"What did you say?" Sapphire raised an eyebrow.

"Uh...nothing...we should go talk to her"

"Okay, let's go then"

"Wait"

"Why?"

"Wow...okay, I'm ready"

"What are you doing?"

"I just don't want to be speechless when I...we talk to her"

"Come on lover boy, let's go talk to her" Sapphire lead me into the room with the dazzling

mare. "Are you Rarity?" Sapphire asked. Not looking up she responded with

"Yes I am, if you can hold on a few moments, I'll be right with you"

"Take your time" Sapphire politely suggested.

A few minutes went by and her customer left. Walking back around to meet us she stopped in

her stride and stared at Sapphire.

"Oh my!"

"Is something wrong?" Sapphire asked.

"Your coat! Is it made of gems?"

"I guess; I'm a Crystal Pony, Sapphire"

"Yes, I could tell the color, but I must know, what is your name darling?"

"Sapphire"

"I'm sorry, apologies for not catching that. Nice to meet you Sapphire. Oh, pardon me" Rarity

turned to me next "What's your name?"

"Onyx"

"Both of you have names of beautiful stones, they are attractive, nonetheless." Rarity

analyzed us for a moment. "So... a crystal pony and a unicorn? Interesting couple..."

"I'm sorry, you've gotten the wrong idea. Sapphire is more of...uh...a sister.", I asserted, "And

she's a Pegasus and I'm not a uni..." Sapphire interrupted with a quiet 'Shh!'. Sapphire then

started to introduce us.

"We came from a castle near Canterlot and..."

"Canterlot? Oh, well that it amazing! Are you a prince by chance?"

"Sorry, no, but my mother is a princess"

"Oh, a princess? What is her name?" Rarity inquired. Sapphire nudged me.

"Um...I came here to ask for information; do you perchance know if I could use the library in

town?"

"It belongs to the Celestia and I'm not sure if it's reopened yet"

"Do you know anywhere else close by I could find some information at then?"

"No, but you might have luck talking to the mayor"

"What's his name?"

"Her name, dear, is Mayor Mare"

"Creative" I whispered. Rarity turned back to Sapphire.

"Where did you come from?"

"Oh, Onyx...", Sapphire started.

"Picked her up in the Crystal Empire" I cut Sapphire off, nudging her.

"The Crystal Empire? That sounds like a delightful place!"

"Well, this conversation was nice. I'll be seeing you" I said.

"Wait one moment, what are you wearing?" I felt panicked now, she knows something. I was

scared to answer.

"Why are you asking?"

"Your dark coat seems to refract light similarly to Sapphire's, what are you wearing and where

can I get one?"

"Well, we'll be seeing you"

"Um, well, okay?"

She said goodbye and we left to the library. As we walked, we talked for a bit.

"So...Sapphire"

"Yeah?"

"Many things have changed over the years"

"Over the centuries" she added.

"To make our final move and bring back Mother, we have to know the past better"

"I agree. Look, we're here!"

The tree was quite large to be a home and small to be a library. Time to find out the past.

Sapphire and I slipped in when nopony was watching. Inside was a nice mass of reading

material.

"Sapphire, stay near the door please"

I walked to the center of the room and stood on the table. I willed my horn to glow and tried to

remember the spell that helped me learn better. I was able to remember and the room began to

glow. All of the books on the shelves were lifted in mid-air and opened up. The knowledge was

being transferred from the books into my head. After two minutes, I was done. The books were

placed back the way they were. Sapphire, bewildered, looked at me with a cocked head and

raised eyebrow.

"What was that?"

"I read some books"

"That's not reading! What was that?"

"I learned a spell when I was really young, to learn all knowledge hidden between the pages

of a book. It let me retain all knowledge of these books without having to physically read and

waste our time. Come over here." Sapphire walked over to me. We teleported back to the

castle.


	4. Chapter 4

"Why are we back here?"

"So I can tell you what I've learned, in privacy."

"Okay, go"

"There have been very small changes to everything, but now I know three big things. One,

the Summer Sun Celebration happens in three days. Two, the Amulet around Celestia's neck

was called what are now the Elements of Harmony. Last, do you remember Atlas?"

"If he was the one you banished to Tartarus, then, yes."

"He escaped, ironically it was soon after we were trapped in time..."

"and stone..." Sapphire interrupted.

"Yes, and stone. He didn't just escape...he changed his name too"

"What is his other name?"

"Sombra"

"Oh, very ominous" Sapphire sarcastically stated.

"He supposedly took over the Crystal Empire"

Sapphire looked as that struck a nerve and she seemed upset "He's still alive? And... my

home!?"

"I don't think he's here anymore. It said he was somehow removed from the Empire and

vanished."

"Okay, now what about the Elements of Harmony."

"It was in a book of old Pony Tails, but the image of the Elements and the gems in the

necklace matched perfectly. They were the same ones used to exile Mother to the moon"

"So, what you're saying is, we need to get the amulet to bring your mother back?"

"What I'm saying is we need to get the amulet away from her. But, yeah, it might help to bring

Mother back."

"We have no army anymore. How are we going to take it from her?"

"Army? We don't need an army. We will sneak in during the night and take it from her. I will

paralyze Celestia in her sleep."

"It seems so simple...how do you know it will work?"

"We will do it on the night before the Summer Sun Celebration."

"You think after last time that we could just walk in the castle, which is no doubt more

guarded now, go into her room, steal a priceless and powerful amulet, then keep her out by

casting a spell on her while she's asleep thus rendering her unconscious, hoping that she

doesn't wake up?! Seems legit..."

"You believe in impossible odds, now? Shocker..."

"Well my name is Sparks"

"I am not amused with your pun, Sapphire"

"Oh come on Onyx, lighten up!"

"Okay then...why don't you shed some light on this situation then?" I replied with a slight

smile.

"You were waiting to use that one, weren't you?" Sapphire said, grinning.

"Yep"

"Okay then...how are we really going to do this?"

"Like I said before; on the night before the Summer Sun Celebration, we will sneak into the

castle and take the amulet. She can see everything the light touches, so..."

"So?"

"So we will chameleon our way throughout the castle until we get to her room. First we take

the amulet, THEN ALL OF EQUESTRIA!", I shouted followed by a maniacal laughter, "But on a

more serious note, the amulet must be relinquished from her possession."

"What is this Summer Sun Celebration you keep bringing up?"

"It's a once a year event, an anniversary of the summer solstice. When everypony expects to

see their demigod and humble ruler, Celestia I'll make sure Mother is standing in her place to

greet them!"

"Good idea. Can we go back to Ponyville? I want to sightsee!"

"Ah, sure, I guess"

We blinked to a bridge near the outer edge of Ponyville. We walked into the town and looked

around. It was getting dark out. As we continued into town, nearing the library, I could feel the

ground rumbling and some interesting sounds coming from one of the homes.

I looked around to see if I could spot the one.

"Sapphire, can you hear that?"

"Hear it? I can feel it!"

"Help me find where it's coming from...ehm...would you kindly"

"Over there" Sapphire pointed her hoof to a house with the windows being lit up with quickly

changing hues from every part of the spectrum.

"Wonder what's going on in there?"

"Let's find out", Sapphire suggested, then ran off to the window to peek in.

"Sapphire, don't do that...what do you see?"

"I see a metal table with some disc's on it...they're spinning for some odd reason"

"Anything else?"

"Three large boxes, they're rumbling. I think that's where the sound is coming from"

"Okay, do you see anypony in there?"

"No...wait...yeah"

"What do they look like?"

"Blue coat...wait, no, green...red? Nonono, purple!"

"Is it changing with the lights?"

"Yeah"

"White"

"Okay...they have a crazy mane, it looks like yours, but more..."

"More what?"

"Crazy?"

"What do you mean?"

"Yours is more...messy. Theirs is like they walked into a lightning storm with a metal rod in

each hoof"

"Can you see the colors?"

"Can't really tell"

"Anything else?"

"It's a unicorn...it's wearing really big glasses"

"Male or female?"

"Your guess is as good as mine"

"Move over" I moved beside Sapphire to take a look. I looked around to find something more

helpful, and then another pony came into view. "Sapphire, get down!" I whispered. I overheard

their argument.

"Hey. Hey! HEY! VINYL!" the new mare yelled over the noise. The pony with the glasses

turned around and made the sounds quieter by turning a small dial on the metal disk table.

"Yeah Octavia?"

"Turn that down! You're going to keep the entire town awake! I need to get some sleep for my

rehearsal tomorrow!"

"Sorry Tavi, I'll try to keep it down" Vinyl responded. I turned to Sapphire and told her the

information I've accumulated.

"So the white one with crazy blue hair and purple glasses is Vinyl and the grey one with

suave hair is Octavia?"

"I guess; alright, I'm good, can we go home now and sleep?"

"You can go; I'm going to visit for a while"

"See you at home then" Sapphire flew off towards our Castle.

"Now I can explore" I whispered to myself.

I walked over to the library and stood by it; looking around to find something to delve in. From

where I stood I could see the Carousel Boutique, Sugarcube Corner, the Everfree Forest,

a cloud city above me, and Celestia's Castle atop Canterlot. Everypony, besides Vinyl was

asleep, or so it seemed. I looked up to the moon and saw the shadowy figure.

"You're almost home, Mother", I grinned.


	5. Chapter 5

I suddenly felt very tired. Not a normal 'I need to sleep' tired either. More like I had all my breath

knocked out of me. I squeezed my eyelids closed for a minute. While they were closed, I heard

crackling. Fire? I opened my eyes. It was fire! Everything around me was on fire!

"No! Hello!? Hello!? Is anypony there? Hello!?", I yelled and yelled but nopony answered.

I could hear a familiar voice among the crackling.

"Onyx!", it almost sounded like Mother, "Onyx!" I couldn't see her anywhere.

"Mother? Mother, where are you!?"

Then the voice came back.

"Onyx! Don't go! Please don't leave me here!"

That one sounded more like Sapphire.

"There's nowhere you can run where I can't find you", another pony said behind me. I turned

around to find Celestia towering over me. "Everything the light touches!", she shouted and

smiled. Her teeth were as sharp as Mother's. Her eyes were blazing like fireballs. She started

laughing maniacally.

"I don't understand?", I said, backing up slowly.

"You can't win, Onyx", she said, walking towards me.

"No...no no no. This isn't real! This is a dream!"

"Not here, not now..."

"Leave me alone!"

"Not ever!", She blasted be with magic from her horn, sealing me in something that looked

like stone.

"No! Not again! Sapphire! Sapphire!" With that last word I was sealed in stone. Celestia

disappeared and Sapphire came running towards me.

"Onyx, get up!", Sapphire shook me, "Okay then, this is gonna hurt!", Sapphire turned around

and kicked my gut. The stone broke and I fell on my side, hugging my stomach. I looked around;

there were no broken pieces of rock around me and I was laying on the castle floor.

"How did I get here? I was still in Ponyville..."

"You were there when I left you...then you teleported here and started acting insane saying

weird things and then you put yourself in stone"

"What!? Did you hear the voices?"

"No, why?"

"I just kept hearing my name being called by you...and Mother"

"What do you think it means?"

"Not sure. You kept calling to me; telling me not to leave you and...then there was Celestia"

"Celestia?"

"Yeah, she looked like Mother except...evil"

"How did she look evil?"

"Her eyes looked like they were on fire"

"Seems like bad memories of the past"

"I think it's something else too"

"Like what?", I asked.

"Uhm...nothing"

"Two more days to the Summer Sun Celebration; you think you'll be ready"

"To bring Mother back?"

"Yeah"

"I sure hope so"

"I hope so too, Onyx. Let's get some sleep"

"I definitely need some", I said, sliding into my bed, "Goodnight, Sapphire"


	6. Chapter 6

I rustled my way out of bed to find Sapphire looking out one of the archways.

"Sapphire, is something the matter?"

"Huh?", she turned to look at me, "No, no...nothing's wrong." I sat and waited next to her.

"Okay, yeah, something's wrong"

"Okay then...what?"

"I've just been thinking...what will happen when your Mother comes back?"

"We will rule Equestria...all of us"

"You don't think she's changed over the years?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know. I've never met her before so don't know how she'll treat me"

"You'll be fine Sapphire. I'm her son and she loves me; I know she'll accept you into the

family"

"Okay, what about what happened to Dawn?"

"You mean Gloom?", I replied.

"Yeah. Ponies change over time; you really think that your Mother will still be the same?

Dawn turned into Gloom, then back into Dawn"

"She's still Gloom, Sapphire"

"But she's changed"

"We have a few hours to get ready and do this"

"Why a few hours? Why not now?"

"Everypony needs to know that everything should be running normally during this celebration"

"What does your last name mean?"

"Where is this coming from?"

"I don't know...I just happened to think about it...Eclissius isn't normal"

"It means eclipse"

"Who gave you your name?"

"Celestia"

"Why'd she name you that?"

"To remind her of the darkest moment in her past. That memory is going to overshadow her

on the anniversary of her brightest day"

"Why did you name yourself Eclissius?"

"It reminds me of Mother...and it sounds cooler than what my other name was going to be"

"Which was?"

"Blackmane"

"Well that's bland and slightly inaccurate since your mane is black and blue"

"Alright Sapphire"

"Speaking of which...did you dye it?"

"Dye what? My mane?"

"Yeah!"

"No, It's natural"

"This is our last moments together...alone. I just wanted to know some things..."

"I can't really ask you anything since I know everything about you."

"No you don't! Fine, then who's my best friend?"

"Me"

"Hmmm, what color am I thinking of?"

"Yellow"

"Wait, how?", Sapphire looked down at her hooves, "No fair!"

"You asked. Now is there anything else?"

"Yeah, I want us to play a guessing game"

"Only to pass the time, Sapphire"

"Okay, I go first. Who am I?" Sapphire pretended to put on a mean face and said "If you blah

blah blah, you will fail"

"Ariel"

"Yep, your turn"

"Alright, I have an idea" I closed my eyes and tried to remember the best I could, how to

shapeshift.

"Uh, Onyx?"

"Hold on..."

"No, Onyx, turn around!" Sapphire pointed her hoof behind me.

"What the?" I looked behind me to see a wall shift back and slide to the left. "What just

happened?" My voice sounded higher and more feminine.

"I don't know; what did you try to do?"

"I forgot how to do the mimic thing and tried to change into Celestia."

My voice was more demanding and feminine.

"You are Celestia!" Sapphire looked at me, surprised.


	7. Chapter 7

"Well now I know I did it right", I eased myself to turn back to normal. I started into the room,

Sapphire stood there looking at me.

"We're not really going in there, right?"

"Of course, c'mon you'll be fine"

"If you say so...", Sapphire stayed right behind me. About ten steps in, we heard stone

grinding against stone.

"The door's closing on us!"

"Don't mind that Sapphire, I'll find a way out of here. Before that door seals, though, do you

mind to...ehm...do your thing?"

"Yeah" Sapphire rolled her eyes and her coat started to slowly glow. We were walking in a

very short, dark hallway that soon lead us to a staircase. As we went down the staircase, I felt a

cold wind blow toward us.

"Sapphire, did you feel that too?"

"No, what did you feel?"

"Cold. It's coming from that direction", I pointed my hoof towards the dark abyss beyond us.

"Maybe we should just turn around and leave"

"You always want to wuss out of this kind stuff. Why is that?"

"I don't like it!"

"Well I need my lantern and you can't get out by yourself anyway, so, come on"

I saw the end of the stairs that stopped at a floor with two large stone pillars. Before the two

pillars was a tablet with three insignias. The first being of a sun on the top left; the second being

a star with whirls extruding from it, in the middle on the bottom; the last being a crescent moon

on the top right. I looked around and saw nothing beyond the pillars.

"Onyx! Do you see anything?"

"Yeah. I see you...and that other pony over there"

"Other pony?" Sapphire looked around to find nopony, besides Onyx around. "What other

pony?"

"That one" I pointed. I started toward the figure. Then I heard Sapphire.

"Onyx! Don't go!", Sapphire cried, "Please don't leave me here!"

I cringed when I heard those words.

"Never. Come with me." I told Sapphire. After saying that I heard a voice in my head.

"No, this part of your journey must be done by you alone. Sapphire cannot follow you. Heed

this warning or your future will not be as you want it."

Assuming that Sapphire didn't hear that I still motioned for her to follow. Her face lit up with a

smile. We both trotted over to the pony. The closer we got to it the less and less it looked like

one. It looked like a silhouette of a pony with a corona of white light emanating from it. It looked

quite lively, standing there in place. I swear that every step forward that we took, it inched it's

head in our direction. By the time we were three meters away, it was able to stare into our eyes.

"Sapphire? "

"Yeah?"

"I'll need you to get away from this thing, far enough that you can't see me or it."

"But, Onyx?"

"No Sapphire, just go"

I saw her get concerned about the situation, but she listened to me nonetheless and walked

away. Once she was out of sight, I continued to examine the thing. I raised my hoof and tapped

it on the head.

"Are you alive?" It didn't blink, though instead it looked to be relaxing itself.

"No I am not living." Wary of the figure, I stepped back. "I told you not to bring her along. You

should have left her inside the castle." It said with an expressionless face.

"We are in the castle."

"We are in the tomb of the Order of Three." It responded.

"Order of Three?"

"The Order of Three ruled over Equestria for many millennia. It included Celestia, Luna, and

Starswirl."

"That doesn't make much sense."

"I guard these tombs."

"How are these tombs? Celestia and Mother are still alive."

"Tombs needn't graves, foal."

"If you continue to insult me, then your grave will be where you stand."

"Foal, you cannot kill something than was never living."

"I could try", I spoke under my breath, "What were you saying before, about the Order of

Three?"

"Luna was banished to the moon soon after the Order of Three disbanded."

"And?"

"And then came you."

"Your wealth of knowledge astounds me", I said sarcastically, "How soon after did the Order

disband?"

"Within two decades."

"What happened to Starswirl?"

"Not even I know that information."

"Who are you?"

"To know the right answers, you must first ask the right questions. What, not who."

"Okay then, what are you."

"That is the right question." It looked down at me, into my eyes. I saw something in its eyes.

A tall mare with a flowing mane. She wore armor on her hooves and a helmet. She had sharp

green eyes that pierced your soul if you were to stare into them for too long. The creatures

eyes, whom I was looking into, glowed brighter and brighter. Almost bright enough to blind

somepony. I heard a humming noise followed by an explosion of white light. Where the creature

stood was a floating mass of a silvery, glitter-like substance. It swirled around me and fell upon

my crystalline armor. Once the last speck landed on my back, the armor shattered and flew into

many directions. The glitter that once covered my armor, now covered me. It seeped into my

charcoal coat and in through my skin. I felt it entering my body, like hundreds of tiny needles

pricking me all at once. The pain felt so severe that my muscles involuntarily tensed up and

I couldn't move. My legs were frozen and locked in place. I felt my blood rushing through my

veins as if adrenaline fuelled my body. Finally it ended, with a quick snapping sound in my head.

From the corner of my eye, I could see Sapphire coming over to me.

"Onyx? What was that?"

"Body... Ugh... Hurts"

"I couldn't see anything except for a shimmering silver cloud of glitter. Where did that other

pony thing go?"

"It's...ehm..inside me..."


	8. Chapter 8

"What do you mean 'inside' you?"

"It dissipated and absorbed itself into me."

"And you let it!?"

"You think I had a choice?"

"Onyx, everypony has a choice, you chose to let it do what it wanted. Anyways, so you feel

any different?"

"I don't know...I feel stronger"

"Do not resist this gift! Let the power flow through you once again. Tonight we will rid Celestia

of her throne. Tonight we will bring Nightmare Moon back", I heard a voice in my head.

"Onyx, you doing alright?", Sapphire asked.

"I...I don't know...I heard...forget it...I'm fine...We should go and deal with Celestia. I'd say it's

about time for the Summer Sun Celebration."

"Okay, but how are we going to get out of here?"

"I got that covered", I said. My horn started to glow hot pink with a green and black aura

around it. With that, I also started to glow the same color.

"Sapphire! Over here", I called. She came running over. "Ready?" I asked.

"Hold on" she responded.

"Why?" I asked her as she trotted back into the darkness. She came back with a dirty, old

rucksack. It looks as was sewn together from old pieces of used fabric.

"I found some things that I wanted to show you...when we get out of here of course", she

said and stepped next to me.

Flash!

We reappeared back in the barracks. I then felt a sudden loss of power and I felt weaker.

"Whoa..."

"What?", Sapphire asked.

"I felt sick; everything's fine now."

"What time is it?", Sapphire turned to look outside, "It's gotten really dark out! How long do we

have?"

"It's time, Sapphire", I looked to her, "Now we go to work."

I teleported Sapphire and myself into the balcony of Celestia's bedroom. Her door was already

unlatched and slightly opened.

"Do you see the amulet?", Sapphire whispered to me.

"No, I can only see Celestia...", I scanned the room again, "I can see a book, but that's it"

Sapphire walked into the room slowly and I followed her. I stood at the foot of Celestia's bed

and started with the spell. Within seconds, Celestia was enveloped in a dark magical aura.

"Everything's good", I assured Sapphire, "Celestia is out."

I turned to help her look for the gems. Sapphire picked up the book that was on the table and

opened it and stuffed it in her bag.

"So"

"What, you find them?", I asked.

"Nope, no idea where they could be"

"Did you check Celestia's neck?"

"Yep and they're not there either"

"Whatever", I sighed, "We'll have to do this without the amulet or the elements"

Sapphire and I stepped onto Celestia's balcony.

"Why don't we fly anywhere anymore?", Sapphire asked.

"It's too far away"

"So, you're lazy?"

"No, I'd just rather save my strength for the event"

"Okay, so, you're lazy?"

"Really Sapphire?"

"Yeah really! How about this...we have ourselves a little race to the castle. It's not that far

away and...it could be a nice warm up for you"

"Fine"

Sapphire and I hopped atop the railing on the balcony and balanced ourselves.

"Onyx, I was thinking..."

"What's on your mind Sparks?"

"What are we going to be called when your Nightmare Moon rules?"

"I will still be Onyx and you, Sapphire"

"No no no, we have to have cool names!"

"My name's cool...", my face saddened.

"I mean like ruling names. Your mother's name was Luna before she ruled, then it was

Nightmare Moon. First it was Atlas, then Lord Sombra. You have to have thought about this

sometime, Onyx, right?"

"Not really. Do you have names for us?"

"Gimme a second...", Sapphire paused, thinking of names, "Onyx...The Prince of Darkness"

"No, too cliché, and plus, I think its trademarked"

"King Eclissius"

"I'm not a king"

"The Second Eclipse"

"Come on Sapphire, you can do better than that"

"Fine, you make one up"

"Okay then. How about Shadow of the Penumbra?"

"Too much"

"Let's worry about this later then..."

"Not too much later though"

"One", I turned my head in her direction, "Two", Sapphire turned her head towards me,

"Three..Go!" I leaned forward, falling off the rail, plunging towards the ground at an expedited

speed.

"You got this Onyx", I told myself, "Just keep it easy."

Sapphire was gliding along until she realised that I wasn't behind her.

"Onyx!", Sapphire yelled, "I'm coming!"

The moments during the descent down I thought about what was next for me and Sapphire.

I closed my eyes and forgot I was still heading toward the ground. When I opened my eyes, I

was a few meters from death. I swiftly extended my wings and closed my eyes. I put my hooves

in front of my face. Scared of what I'd have to feel soon. Seconds later, when I should have met

my end, I felt a soothing breeze beneath my wings. I lowered my hooves and opened my eyes

slowly.

I'm...flying?

I looked beneath myself and saw nothing. I looked above me and saw a few clouds, but nothing

beyond that.

What is happening

I took another look around and saw lights in the distance. With each second, I got closer and

closer to the lights. I could make them out as some kind of pictures.

Moving pictures? Am I in a place born of dark magic?

There was much more to see than I thought. They were pictures of different ponies. Maybe of

their memories.

Wait...

There was a specific pony that caught my eye. She had a mane of purple with a stripe of french

rose pink and palatinate purple. Her coat was also a light lavender.

What is she...

The pony looked over towards the moon, then to a small green and purple baby dragon.

"Sorry, Spike, but I have to convince the Princess that Nightmare Moon is coming, and we're

running out of time!"

The picture faded and a new one appeared in its place.

"Warn the princess? She is working with Celestia?", I spoke aloud and waited for somepony

to speak again.

"Come on Twilight, it's the Eve of the Summer Sun Celebration, have some fun!"

"Well, Twilight, you will not succeed. I will bring Mother back and you will not stop me!

You have no hope of stopping me, for I was born of the moon itself. I am the shadow of your

aspirations! I am the eclipse!", I concluded.

Now the question is...how do I get out of here?

I looked around and still saw nothing but the moving images in the clouds.

I got here by flying into the ground...so...I can try that again. Where is the ground?

I started slowing myself down and looked beneath me.

Here it goes...

I angled myself downward, nose pointed towards...well...whatever isn't up here. I felt myself

accelerate to such an extent that my cheeks began to flap viciously. I continued to do this for the

next thirty seconds. All I did was fall. I didn't get back to Equestria. Just when I thought of losing

hope, of having no contact anymore, of not bringing back Mother, a pony spoke.

"Do you know where you are? Do you know what this place is? This is your gift. A gift passed

from your mother. A gift that not all alicorns know how to use. Your mother can see into others'

dreams. Celestia can see all that is light. Onyx, you can see...", the voice stopped and the

darkness around me flashed white. It was too bright and I sheltered my eyes from the blinding

white. When the brightness cleared, I reopened my eyes.

"Onyx? Hey wake up!", I heard somepony say. Sapphire was standing over me, shaking me

roughly. I was laid down on my back with Sapphire in front of me. We were in a small crater

somewhere in the Everfree Forest.

"What in Tartarus happened to you? Where did you go?", Sapphire asked frantically.

"What was and will be...", I finished the voices sentence.

"What?"

"Never mind that, let's get to Ponyville"

Sapphire stood me up and I brushed myself off.

"This time", Sapphire started off, "Just teleport us there."

Sapphire stood closely to me and we teleported to somewhere in Ponyville. Wherever it was, it

was dark.

"You came back!", I heard an energetic voice utter, "Hoped that you'd come back! Are you

here for Twilight's surprise party too?!" The pony drew a flashlight close to her face.

"Pinkie?"

"You remembered my name! Yay!"

"No, we're not here for...did you say Twilight?"

"Uh huh!"

"Does she have a green and purple baby dragon with her named Spike?"

"Yep, that's Twilight Sparkle!"

"Okay, sure. I'll stay for her party"

The pink pony turned from me to address the crowd.

"Okay everypony, when Twilight comes through that door and the lights come on, I want to

hear the loudest cheering you've ever cheered aloud!"

We waited for a few seconds and nothing. One minute, two minutes, nothing.

"How long do we..."

"Shhh!", Pinkie shushed me.

I heard the slight creak of a hinge, then a door shutting. Lights came on and everypony yelled.

Pinkie was the loudest of them all. Now that the lights were on, I could see everypony. I

scanned the room and saw a few familiar faces. I saw the gorgeous pony with the amethyst

curled mane, Rarity. I also spotted the prism haired pony, Rainbow Dash. Everypony seemed to

mix and mingle among themselves. The library was filled up. I saw Twilight moving towards me

and Sapphire.

"Sparks"

"Yeah, Onyx?"

"Try to meet me outside"

I slipped by some ponies and bumped into others, including this one pony. She looked sadly

towards the ground.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to do that"

She apologised for my action.

"No need to say sorry, I was rushing by you. My apologies."

The pale yellow pony looked at me through her light pink, curled mane, which was covering one

eye.

"Sorry", she said, backing herself into a dimly lit corner.

Sapphire and I continued to walk by until we were outside in the fresh air.

"What are we doing out here?"

"I needed to make sure she came here"

"Who is 'she'?"

"That Twilight pony..."

"Okay, is this part of your plan?"

"Yes, now we need to go to the castle to prepare the incantation"

I, yet again, teleported Sapphire and myself to our castle.

"We need to get up there", I pointed my hoof to the spire on top of the castle. It had a

staircase spiraling around it to it's base.

"Okay then, let's do it!", Sapphire said enthusiastically.

We walked over to the nearest staircase and headed up to the top floor. On top of the spire was

a platform. It gave the perfect view of the moon and starry sky. It was positioned above all of the

trees in the Everfree Forest. The stars in the sky started to align.

"The stars would aid her return...though this may be true, it was her son", I murmured to

myself.

"Sapphire, when I do this, I don't want you so close to me. I dont want to have a

miscalculation in this spell and harm you"

"Miscalculation? Come on Onyx, what's the real reason?"

"Magical kinetic feedback. It could knock you unconscious and send you off this spire. I'd feel

much better if you were down there watching than in the danger zone up here"

"Alright", Sapphire glided her way down to the castle door, watching me intently.

This is the beginning of their end.

"Well done child, you are nearly there. She is almost returned! I will help you channel your

magic and let you tap into my own"

"Let's do this!"

I willed my horn to glow and my eyes started to let off a green and black smoke. I had a mixture

of magenta, green, and black aura glowing around my horn. Then I felt a sudden surge of power

as I was lifted off the ground, adding a silver glow to my aura, which was now encompassing my

whole body. My eyes glowed white and my body changed color to black. The multi-colored aura

switched to a solid silver-white color.

"Mother! You're coming home!", I shouted and let out a deep breath.

My aura around my horn illuminated with greater and greater intensity until a white ball of

energy appeared.

"GAAAAAAAAHH!"

I shot four white spheres at the moon and at the same time as the last one was released, a

nova of explosive energy blew apart most of the castle around me.

I fell off of the no longer existent spire and hit the stone floor of the castle rather hard. I looked

up towards the moon and saw nothing happening. Sapphire ran over to me and without worry of

the injuries I may have, she asked, "I'm sorry Onyx, you tried."

"Trying signifies failure, Sparks, look!", I pointed to the moon.

The mare in the moon vanished. Seconds later an elegant blue streak of energy came towards

the castle.

BOOM!

It hit the ground meters away, gathering dust into the air. Among the dirty fog was a tall mare.

Her coat was midnight blue and she had piercing green eyes, long sharp horn, large raven-like

wings, and wore armor on her head and hooves. It was Mother!

"Onyx...is that..."

"Yes, Sparks, it is"

The grin on my face turned to a smile. As the mare straightened herself, she spoke to us.

"Children", she shouted at us, "Approach me!"

We did as we were told and walked closer to her.

"Mother?", I asked, "What will we do now?"

"We? I shall see to my sister"

"I've taken care of her"

"Of what way?"

"She will be in eternal slumber until the moon falls"

"Good"

"There are going to be ponies waiting at the center of Ponyville for Celestia and..."

"Ponyville? Hmm, I shall greet them instead. I will show them the ruler they deserve...to kneel

to..."

"May we..."

Before I could finish my sentence, Nightmare Moon flew off into the night, making her way to

Ponyville.

"Sparks, we need to get there too. I don't want to miss this"

Sapphire and I teleported to the bridge of Ponyville and entered the town. We trotted over to the

gathering in the center of town.

"Fillies and gentlecolts, as mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the

beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!", ponies started to cheer, " In just a few moments,

our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this, the longest day of the year!

And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives

us the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all

of Equestria...", the Mayor paused, "Princess Celestia!"

The curtain was pulled, revealing nothing. Ponies started chattering quietly and nervously

around us.

"Remain calm, everypony, there must be a reasonable explanation!", the Mayor spoke out to

everypony.

"Ooh, ooh, I love guessing games! Is she hiding?!", I heard Pinkie among the crowd.

"She's gone!", Rarity said, ponies gasping.

"Ooh, she's good", Pinkie yelped, with more ponies gasping.

Then from behind the rails of the balcony I could see a flowing mane that looked like the night

sky. Then Mother came into view.

"Oh no... Nightmare Moon!"

"Oh, my beloved subjects. It's been so long since I've seen your precious, little sun-loving

faces", Nightmare Moon said. Right after that Rainbow Dash lifted herself into the air.

"What did you do with our Princess?!"

Rainbow Dash was pulled down by somepony.

Mother chuckled and spoke, "Why, am I not royal enough for you? Don't you know who I am?

Does my crown no longer count now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years? Did you

not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?"

Then another pony spoke up.

"I did. And I know who you are", it was Twilight, "You're the Mare in the Moon...Nightmare

Moon!", ponies gasped.I looked around.

"Is there not enough air to breath around here or are they just being melodramatic?", I

whispered to Sapphire.

"Well well well, somepony who remembers me. Then you also know why I'm here", Mother

inquired.

"You're here to...to...", Twilight stammered.

"Remember this day, little ponies, for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will

last forever!", Nightmare Moon laughed with much bass in her tone.


	9. Chapter 9

"Seize her! Only she knows where the Princess is!", Mayor Mare exclaimed.

"Stand back, you foals!", Mother started to laugh.

Nightmare Moon struck three of Celestia's guards with lightning, sending them a short distance.

Soon after that, Mother turned into the same streak of energy that came from the moon and

soared off in the direction of the Everfree Forest. I saw Twilight running away so I was able to

catch up to her and stop her in front of the library.

"Twilight, do you know what's going on?"

"Not really, but I have to find a way to stop it!", then she mumbled to herself, "I need to find

that book on the Elements of Harmony!"

"Elements of...Harmony?", I asked, playing stupid.

"Uh, yeah, they stopped Nightmare Moon the first time"

What makes you so sure that you'll stop her this time? I gritted my teeth as I thought about

what could happen.

"You really think she could be stopped?", I asked.

"I hope so, for the rest of Equestria, I hope so", Twilight continued into the library and closed

the door. Sapphire and I walked away from the library and saw Rainbow Dash, followed by four

other ponies rushing towards me. Rainbow Dash approached me angrily while hovering in the

air.

"Hey, where did Twilight go? We need to talk to her, now!"

"She went inside", I pointed to the door of the library.

Without saying 'thank you' or 'goodbye' she darted by me. Of the other four I could recognize

them from before. There was Rarity, Pinkie, that shy one I bumped into earlier and the last

one, which was wearing a cowmare hat, that yanked Rainbow out of the air earlier during the

celebration. Pinkie was the only one to hop by and say, "Hey, Onyx!"

"Onyx, what are we going to do now?"

"We wait and follow behind. If Twilight is going after the Elements, the same elements that

sent Mother into exile before, then we need to take them or destroy them"

"But...we don't know where they are..."

"Yeah. Wait! Didn't you grab some book from Celestia's room?"

"Oh, yeah! Maybe that has something on the Elements!"

Sapphire scrounged through her bag and pulled out an ornate, silver and gold trimmed book.

"Looks like a diary", I said.

Sapphire opened the cover and read through. She was mumbling what she read but I could

catch a few words here and there.

"Discord sealed away...sister gone...Elements hidden..."

"Hidden? Hidden where?!"

"A castle in the Everfree"

"A castle? You mean the castle? Home!"

"That's what it looks like"

"Great! First we gotta go put that book back"

"Why? I thought you hated Celestia?"

"I do, but that's personal"

"She took your mother away and I can't take a meager book?"

"Mother is back, Sapphire. Don't argue with me. Either come with me or I'll take it back

myself"

"Fine, I'll go, but you're putting it back"

"Good girl, Sapphire"

"I'm not a dog", she retorted.

We both teleported back to Celestia's room. This time it was lit up and there were two guards

alongside Celestia's body and what looked like, at a glance, a doctor.

"Who are you?", the pale guard asked sternly.

"Uh, just returning something...", I said.

"This area is off limits, I will have to detain you until further notice"

"Well in that case", I hurled the book at his face, "I'm checking this one back in!"

Sapphire and I teleported back to Ponyville.

"That was close", Sapphire said, "But why didn't you just teleport back to the castle"

"Twilight is looking for them too. If we follow them there, then we can take them before they

can. Also, we can use them on her and her little posse to stop them. In the end we'll give them

to Mother"

"Why not keep them?"

"She is the one to rule. I feel it would be better that way"

"Okay then. You lead the way"

Sapphire and I walked to the entrance of the Everfree. In the distance I could spot six different

ponies. Twilight and the other five that were rushing towards her house, stood at the edge of the

Everfree. They started into the forest with Sapphire and me behind them and out of sight.

"A manticore!", I heard Twilight shout.

Sapphire stopped walking and tapped me on the flank.

"Onyx, I'm not going out there to face the manticore"

"Wasn't planning on it. It would be too convenient to see me that often and then suddenly

come to the rescue of our adversaries. We'll go around, through that cave"

"Good"

We walked a longer way around the fight and got to the cave.

"Need me to..."

"Nah, I got it", I said as I illuminated my horn with a silvery white glow.

"No more pink, green, and black?"

"What?"

"Your magic"

"Oh, yeah I guess. This looks cooler anyway"

"I still have things to show you"

"After we're done here"

"Alright"

We continued through the cave and came to a creature that spoke to us.

"My chandelier and rug returns, eh?"

The beast hunched over with shards of blue crystal sticking out of him. The shards seemed to

blend and healed with his skin.

"How did you survive? Sapphire killed you!"

"Then I stand before you as an undead?"

"Are you going to try and kill us again?"

"No point in doing so"

"What made you have a change of heart?"

"Not a change of heart"

"Then what"

"You don't understand. I will kill you. I won't have to try"

"Sapphire", I looked at her concerned.

"I could have done it quickly before, but you wanted to fight back. Now I will make it slow. I

will skin you alive. I will pluck each feather from your wings, then tear the flesh off with my teeth.

Then rip your spine from your back by removing your tail. Your horn will be broken off its mount

and used for the skinning", I looked at the creature disgusted, "As for your friend...She will watch

as I do it. I will feed the pieces of your body to her forcefully and then kill her. Breaking every

bone until..."

"STOP! You will never get to her! This time you will die, I will make sure of it...", I yelled.

"Yes, let the rage flow through you. Feel my power", I felt a shiver go down my spine, "Kill

him"

I charged my horn with energy and started sprinting towards the beast with my head lowered.

"Onyx, wait!", Sapphire called to me.

I continued running forward until I heard a light snap and felt something dripping onto my head

from my horn. I felt a sudden weight on my horn, then that same feeling vanished soon after

along with a thud to soon follow.

"Onyx, what did you do?"

"What was necessary to do. Now let's move on"

"You killed it"

"It would have killed us. I wasn't going to let it get that chance"

We continued through the cave, leaving the corpse of the beast behind us.

"Onyx, you have blood on your horn and your mane!"

"It'll be fine...I can wash it out later"

"But...you killed it..."

"It's blood is on my hooves, Sapphire, not yours. Let it be!"

"Okay", Sapphire sniffled in attempt to hold back her tears.

After a short trek, we came back to the castle, now nearly destroyed with debris and stones

scattered everywhere.

"Onyx, I don't..."

"Shush Sparks. I hear somepony"

I could hear a couple voices bickering back and forth in the distance. They sounded very close.

We moved closer to them and found the voices coming from a dilapidated dome that was on its

own natural platform. It seemed to be something of an old observatory. Sapphire followed me

reluctantly and I moved towards an archway near the edge of the cliff.

"This looks like an observation deck...I think", I said, then I saw Mother and Twilight in the

room. Twilight looked as if she were preparing to charge Nightmare Moon.

"You're kidding. You're kidding, right?", Mother said.

Twilight's horn started to glow as she took off towards Nightmare Moon. In turn Mother did the

same. As they charged each other, you could virtually feel the intensity. Right before the two

would have clashed, Twilight teleported to a raised stone platform with five stone orbs on it, the

same one Mother was on before their little game of chicken.

"Just one spark. Come on, come on", Twilight whispered. Then Mother teleported in front of

her and zapped her back. Twilight landed on her flank quite hard.

"Yes!", I quietly cheered for Mother.

"No! No!", Mother exclaimed. The stone orbs light up lavender and a bolt of purple electricity

jumped from one to the next. Then Mother started to laugh and stomped her hoof to the ground,

breaking apart the stones into colorless crystals.

"You little foal! Thinking you could defeat me? Now you will never see your princess, or your

sun! The night will last forever!", Mother continued to laugh. I could then hear the shouting of

five other ponies in the distance.

"You think you can destroy The Elements of Harmony just like that? Well, you're wrong,

because the spirits of The Elements of Harmony are right here!"

"What?", Mother questioned.

The crystal shards rose into the air around Mother.

"Applejack, who reassured me when I was in doubt, represents the spirit of... honesty!

Fluttershy, who tamed the manticore with her compassion, represents the spirit of...kindness!

Pinkie Pie, who banished fear by giggling in the face of danger, represents the spirit

of...laughter! Rarity, who calmed a sorrowful serpent with a meaningful gift represents the spirit

of...generosity! And Rainbow Dash, who could not abandon her friends for her own heart's

desire represents the spirit of... loyalty!"

A few shards from the pieces of the crystal layin on the ground levitated and circled each pony.

"The spirits of these five ponies got us through every challenge you threw at us"

"No! It's not going to work...it can't!", I said, "Quick, Sapphire, do something!"

"I can't do anything"

"What do you mean you can't do anything? Jus transmogrify the shards...or move

them...or...or..."

"Just wait Onyx, maybe she can do it on her own..."

Then we listened to Mother's conversation with Twilight further.

"You still don't have the sixth Element! The spark didn't work!"

"But it did! A different kind of spark", Twilight turned towards the other ponies, "I felt it the

very moment I realized how happy I was to hear you, to see you, how much I cared about you.

The spark ignited inside me when I realized that you all... are my friends!", The a single stone

orb lowered from the ceiling, "You see, Nightmare Moon, when those Elements are ignited by

the... the spark, that resides in the heart of us all, it creates the sixth element: the element of...

magic!"

The last orb exploded into a white light. Each set of shards that orbited each pony formed a

different colored gem which fit into a golden necklace.

"I have to go in there! Mother needs my help!", I tried to crawl up the wall, but Sapphire pulled

me down, "What are you doing?!"

"Don't do this Onyx, you'll regret it!"

"How do you know?!"

"I know you. If she's as strong as you are right now then she'll make it though this too"

"But, Sapphire..."

I looked onward and saw a double rainbow helix spiraling towards Nightmare Moon.

"Mother! No!", I hurriedly tried to crawl to the opening to get inside before it was too late. As

I raise my hooves to the arch opening, an explosion sent me off the cliffside. My blood ran cold

at the thought of losing mother again. The anger that I experienced inside made me feel as if

everything was moving in slow motion, specifically, the motion of falling to the ground. I hit the

ground pretty hard and heard a snap. I felt no pain from the fall, mainly because I was knocked

unconscious right after I hit the ground. Later on, I had woken up from my rage-induced

slumber. It was very bright out, from what light shined through the trees. I knew right then that,

for sure, Mother had perished. I lay on the ground, in a pit of mud that seemed to cradle me like

a child in it's mother's grip. I wondered, was that all for nothing? I must be dreaming, there's no

way that I'd let Mother down.


	10. Chapter 10

I tried to get up, but I couldn't. I lie there on my back, like a helpless turtle.

"Sapphire", I called out, " Sapphire! Where are you?! Hello!? Is Anypony there?"

I waited for a response and only heard crickets chirping, frogs croaking, and mosquitoes

buzzing, in the distance. I started to hear something else nearby. Something that wasn't a

cricket, frog, or mosquito, but instead, something far larger. I hear thick wet thuds coming

from the direction closest to my head. I struggle to get free but to no avail.

"Come on..ugh...you piece of...", then I heard a disgusting 'squish' from the mud

surrounding my leg. Even though my leg that was stuck, is now out, I still cannot move off of

my back. I tried a spell to levitate myself out of hold of the muddy earthen shackles. I pushed

my magic as hard as it could go, but nothing happened. It was too difficult for me to try any

further. I was weak and tired with the sun beating on me in this foul swamp. I continue to hear

the noises of the beast moving towards me.

"That didn't work...teleport?", I asked aloud, as if there were somepony else to talk to. I tried

again, but had the same outcome.

"Why isn't it working?", I attempted to lean forward to forcefully remove my stuck wings

from the ground. I pulled as hard as I could from the ground and felt a pop on my back. I was

very concerned, considering I have yet to feel my wings themselves. I turn my head to find

the beast standing on its two legs looking down at me with its eight eyes and four heads

focused solely on me.

"Are you kidding me? A hydra? Now? Sweet mother of..."

The hydra thrusted all four heads towards me rapidly, most likely in attempt to kill me. My

horn illuminated the silvery white color and I was teleported out of harms way. Now I stand on

a glass platform in the realm of which I once was. The place of dreams, memories, and what

was to come.

"I didn't do that..."

"I did", somepony said behind me. It was the same silvery pony that I had seen in our

castle.

"How did...?"

"You don't control your magic anymore, Onyx, I do. You are just a medium for my power"

"But...no?"

"Yes, It is true. You have failed your duties as Defender of the Order of Three, a Child of

the Night, and as her son"

"I'm not a Defender of...that thing, I'm not a Child of the Night, I am ONLY Nightmare

Moon's son! Where did you even come from anyways, huh?"

"When I entered your body, you became one of each. You will defend in what I believe, not

what you want to believe"

"Wrong!", I charged my horn and shot the mystical creature before me. A white bolt of

energy struck it and it had dissipated.

"No more voices, no more you", I spoke aloud, "I control my own thoughts, my own

emotions, and my own fate. Not you!"

I stood and waited seconds for a response or rebuttal from the ghastly figure from within my

head. Nothing, finally.

"Why here?", I asked. As I stood, I looked down into the glass pane I was atop of. I could

barely see myself as the reflection within it. My mane was frazzled with dirt and dried blood in

it. My coat was also a sandy brown color with all of the dried mud on me. My wings, when I

stretched them, hurt. I tried to fully extend them, but when I did, I felt a shift on my back and

heard a loud pop.

"AAAAGH!", I shouted and a tear came to the corner of my eye. My wings had been broken

and I didn't feel anything until now.

"Did I break them when I fell? Damnit This hurts!", I rested my wings and retracted them

back to my sides. I willed my horn to glow and saw that I still had the silver aura from that one

pony thing.

"Back here, huh?", I looked around me, "I need to see if Mother made it; I need to see if she

is still alive"

I was about to fly towards the clouded images ahead of me when I realised something.

"Ignoramus, your wings are broken", I said to myself.

I took a step forward with my one hoof. Before I could continue, the platform started to

accelerate in the direction I was facing.

"That works..."

I moved forward on the platform. Ahead I saw a familiar face.

"Mother?", the mare in the moving picture looked very similar to her, but instead of having

green eyes and a starry midnight flowing mane, her mane was short and a lighter blue color.

"Mother...what did they do to you?"

She stood alongside Celestia and in front of the six that were in the woods. Celestia had a

smile on her face as did each of the six. Mother seemed to hide next to Celestia, like a scared

child or sibling. Mother looked younger, nearly Sapphire's and my age.

"At least she's still alive, and as it seems, she is neither harmed nor imprisoned", I stepped

forward and hopped off the platform, plummeting downward into the normal world. This time,

when I had exited the other place, I had stood on the ground, instead of laying in a crater. I

was no longer in the swamp, but instead, in the castle. I stood in the same place that Mother

did, prior to being knocked off the ledge. I walked back to the barracks of my castle and

cleaned myself off, removing the blood, mud, and dirt. I reset my mane back to what it was

supposed to be.

"Great...now to fix my wings"

I knew this would hurt, I remembered what happened when I did it to Sapphire. I just hope it'll

be easier. I started meditating and continued with the spell. My wings stretched and stretched,

until they were linear and flat. The pain was nearly too much. There were two quiet popping

noises and my wings felt much better, though still broken. A few more seconds and they were

fixed. A feeling of ecstasy flowed through my body as the pain subsided.

"Much better"

I thought of some things, first was Mother, then Sapphire. Where could I find them. I could

only guess that Mother would be closely watched by Celestia. I have no clue where Sparks

could be.

Now, with everything screwed up, yet somehow still okay, I need to get them back to me.


End file.
